These centenarians practice
daily rituals that we can learn from to live longer, healthier lives.
When people like the beloved Betty White live to be nearly 100
years old, you can't help but ask, "what was their secret?" While
genetics play a significant role in a person's lifespan, we also know that
lifestyle makes an enormous difference.
This topic inspired Dan Buettner to research the regions of the
world where people live the longest. He found five areas on the globe with the
highest concentrations of centenarians, known as the Blue Zones, and from
there, he investigated what they all have in common.
These regions include Sardinia in Italy, Okinawa in Japan, Ikaria
in Greece, Nicoya in Costa Rica, and Loma Linda in California. After extensive
research on their diets, movement, and daily practices, Buettner developed what
is known as the Blue Zones Diet.
Continue reading to learn more about some of the world's
longest-living people's eating habits.
1. mainly eating plant-based
One of the markers of all five Blue Zone regions is eating
predominantly plant-based, which the Blue Zone's official website refers to as
the "plant slant."
For example, according to a National Geographic article covering
the Blue Zones, those in Loma Linda eat a diet that consists of about 27% fruit
and 33% vegetables, with only about 4% coming from meat.
Ikarians (in Greece) take 20% of their daily calories from
vegetables, 17% from greens especially, 11% from legumes, 6% from fish, and
only 5% from meat.
This doesn't mean that you have to go entirely vegetarian, but
these communities prove that you don't need meat every day to live a healthy
lifestyle.
According to the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, meat
(usual pork) is consumed on average around five times per month, and the
serving size is only as large as a deck of cards.
2. Daily serving of beans
For those trying to mimic some of the eating habits practiced by
the most extended living people, it is recommended that you make beans the
center of some of your meals, using them as a replacement for the meat you
would have as the main course.
All five Blue Zone regions consume beans or legumes as a central
part of their diet, and the Blue Zones Diet website states that these
communities eat about four times the amount of beans that Americans do on
average.
Unfortunately, we could use more beans in our daily diet because
their health benefits are insurmountable. A 2021 study published in Nutrients confirms that consuming beans (as part of a plant-based diet) is associated
with improved cardiovascular health, lower inflammation, and may even help
improve your immune system to help fight disease.
3. 80-20 rule
Another exciting thing about these five regions of the world is
that they not only put intention into the specific food they eat, but they
place care in their relationship to eating.
The Okinawans have been practicing the 80% rule for thousands of
years, which is the practice of only eating until they're about 80% full. They
hold space for the other 20%, acknowledging that they don't always need to fill
it.
This practice may seem strange and difficult to many Americans.
However, for the people of Okinawa, this 20% difference is one of the ways they
stay happy and healthy.
4. Eat healthy fats
The world's most extended living people all have one thing in
common: they eat good fats instead of unhealthy fats. Avocados, nuts, and
salmon are popular in the Loma Linda Seventh-Day Adventist community; for
example, Sardinians get their healthy fats from olive oil.
Replacing things like butter and margarine with a healthy fat like
extra virgin olive oil can help improve your overall health. Studies show that
extra-virgin olive oil can help lower inflammation and improve the health of
your arteries.
5. Eat whole grains
Along with healthy fats, plenty of veggies, and daily servings of
beans, the world's longest-living people eat a lot of whole grains. In fact,
according to National Geographic, Nicoyans get 26% of their daily intake from
grains, and in Sardinia, it's 47%!
When it comes to specific whole grains, Blue Zone Diet researchers discovered that the five regions ate grains that contained less gluten than
those often consumed in America. For instance, they eat less wheat and more
barley, oats, and brown rice.
This certainly isn't surprising, seeing as grains like oats are some of the healthiest foods you can eat for your weight, gut and for reducing chronic inflammation.